Calming The Storm
by JetWarrior
Summary: Blossom and Buttercup are fighting more than ever, so once again it's up to Bubbles to play the role of Peacemaker, though this time she takes a slightly different approach....
1. Step 1: A Course Of Action

_Hey, you guys! It's been a while since my last story, so I thought I'd go ahead and try my hand at this whole fanfiction thing, again. As with most of my stories, this one is centered around Bubbles, and the characters are exactly as they were at the end of the last season of the series. This story only involves the family, though; there won't be any appearances by villains or anything of that sort (sorry if that disappoints you). Still, I hope you enjoy it!_

Disclaimer _- I only own the story, not the characters within._

* * *

**Calming The Storm, Ch. 1**

"Shut up, Buttercup!" screamed Blossom's voice from downstairs. Bubbles sighed and shook her head.

The Utonium household had once again become a warzone. Downstairs, Blossom and Buttercup were screaming their lungs out trying to make a point long forgotten to one another. It seemed that nowadays, whenever the Powerpuff Girls weren't fighting a monster or an evil supervillain, they were fighting each other...or rather, two of them were fighting each other. These little skirmishes between Blossom and Buttercup had become more frequent than in the past, and a bit more intense. And they all seem to ignite with the smallest provocation, usually no more than Buttercup making a joke about Blossom that she takes too seriously, or Blossom reprimanding Buttercup for some small thing she did earlier that day.

Of course, there were three Powerpuff Girls...so where was Bubbles during all of these feuds? It used to be that she'd be off in a corner, huddled in the fetal position just hoping that they'd stop soon. Then there was a period that you might find her in the midst of the action herself. Lately, however, she'd taken to retreating to the girls' exceedingly large bedroom; she'd simply close the door, turn up some music, and take advantage of the time she had alone to do something productive.

Such was the case now: while her sisters were engaged in mortal combat in the living room, Bubbles was upstairs on the bed with her favorite companion Octi, listening to music with the volume up to "11" and drawing a picture. Did it bother her that at that very moment her sisters might cause irreparable damage to their relationship? Not at all.

Nope, not one bit.

Well...maybe a little.

Or a lot.

Of course she was worried! But Bubbles had mastered the art of feigning apathy when it came to her siblings' petty squabbles. She just had to concentrate on whatever it was she was doing, that's all.

Her attention was currently focused on the picture she was drawing of a place in the forest she had only been to once before—a magical place, where animals had given her chalk of every imaginable color. Actually, she wasn't sure if the place was real or just part of Him's ploy to destroy the girls that time, but that didn't matter to Bubbles—that place was special. She'd never been able to find the place afterwards though, so she wanted to have something to remember it by.

It took all of her concentration to remember what it looked like. All the animals, all the flowers and all the colors were hard to keep separate, but with solitude granted her by her sisters, Bubbles was really making progress. She was especially proud of her work this time, because she wasn't using her preferred medium (crayons); instead, she decided that a picture this special and meaningful deserved to be distinguished from her earlier works, and so she was using the Watercolor Set that the Professor had bought her only a week ago.

Of course, using paint instead of crayons or colored pencils meant that there was very little room for error. And whenever there's very little room for error, Murphy's Law loves to come into play. This case was no different.

Bubbles was about 2/3rd the way done with her picture when it happened. The fight downstairs had taken a turn for the worst. The house shook; there was a cry of fury, and then a cacophonous "CRASH!" split the eardrums of all those unlucky enough to hear it...including Bubbles. A reflex was all it took to cause her hand to streak across the paper with paintbrush in-tow. It might not have been so bad if she hadn't chosen that precise moment to paint with a bright red color...but alas, she had, and Bubbles certainly didn't remember a big red slash across the stump she sat on that day. Effectively, her picture was ruined.

Bubbles stared in shock at her picture. There were a few seconds where she wasn't quite sure what had just happened. This was followed by a second or two when her mind shuffled through about five similar-yet-distinct emotions: sadness, grief, anger and disappointment among them, each with an accompanying course of action (cry, scream, bash her sisters over the head with some heavy blunt object, etc.). However, one single thought prevailed above the rest: 'this has to end now'; with this motivating her into action, Bubbles set aside her art supplies and quickly rushed downstairs.

The scene awaiting her from downstairs was not surprising in the least: Blossom and Buttercup were standing in the living room staring at the far wall with expressions similar to a child who has just broken their parents' favorite vase. As a matter of fact, that's exactly what had transpired: in the midst of their scuffle, the two sisters had knocked down the vase's pedestal with such force that it flung the vase into the wall across the room, where it instantly shattered upon impact; there was a large muddy smudge on the wall where it had hit, and on the floor lay a mix of dirt, flowers and broken glass. About the time Bubbles made it downstairs, her sisters were regaining their fervor and preparing for the inevitable aftermath of the accident: the Blame Game.

"Look what you did, Buttercup! That was one of the Professor's favorite vases!" Blossom cried out.

"What I did!? I didn't do that, it's your fault!" the brunette retorted.

"My fault? How is it my fault, it's not like I pushed myself into the stand!"

"Well, I wouldn't have pushed you if you hadn't pushed me first!"

"Well I wouldn't have pushed you first if you hadn't tried to tackle me!"

"I only did that because you..."

And so the squabble went on, right back up to the intensity it was at to begin with. Bubbles watched them throw accusations back and forth, the broken vase already all but forgotten about as the two sisters tried to gain the upper hand in the disagreement. Watching them argue as they were brought back the same mix of emotions as before: sadness, disappointment, anger, even a bit of disgust. How were they ever going to stay a team and be role-models for the city if they were going to let some petty differences come between them?

The short answer: they couldn't. That's why this had to end now.

A course of action was needed...but which one? Anything too subtle would be ignored; anything too harsh would only serve to bring Bubbles herself into the conflict, which would only do more harm than good. No, she had to do something with enough sternness that it would be taken seriously, yet gentle enough to ward off any further disagreements...but what?

And then, in a single moment in which she looked back upon a private moment she had had with the Professor, a solution presented itself. When it did, she was surprised she hadn't thought of it sooner. It was the perfect opportunity to put a plan into action that had been stewing for a while now.

That entire thought train lasted about three seconds in real time; in that time, it seemed that Blossom and Buttercup were about to resort once again to fisticuffs. Bubbles had to act fast. The only question now was how to get their attention? She thought back up to her painting (the one with the gigantic red paint streak in the middle of it), and quickly decided to allow herself this moment to express her frustration.

Just as Buttercup looked to be rearing back to attack, Bubbles opened her mouth.

"_**ENOUGH!**_"

It got the job done. In shock (and still reeling from the shout), the two feuding girls stared at the sister they never even noticed was there. She was standing at the base of the stares with her hands on her hips, wearing an expression of anger and impatience on her face.

Needless to say, Bubbles had their undivided attention.

"This has gone on long enough!" she continued. "I tried to ignore for as long as I could, but I can't take it anymore!" Her voice then turned chillingly quiet.

"So, here's what's going to happen. First, you guys are going clean up the mess that you made. Then, you'll meet me upstairs in five minutes, and we are going to get to the bottom of this if it takes us all day!" And with that, Bubbles turned around and stormed up the stairs again.

Blossom and Buttercup were still in a semi-shocked state even after Bubbles took her leave. They stared at one another...then Buttercup spoke.

"Should we?"

"Well, I don't know about you," Blossom replied, "but I rather like my eardrums in one piece, so I'm going to go see what she has planned. Besides," she said with a hint of shame creeping in to her voice, "I think we owe her that much."

Buttercup nodded...then remembered that she was at odds with her sister. She let out a humph, then answered "Do whatever you want; I'll decide for myself whether or not I owe anybody anything."

Blossom stared in frustration at her sibling, let out her own "Hmph!," then proceeded towards the kitchen to grab a broom and dustpan. Buttercup went towards the bathroom to grab a wet cloth for wiping the wall with.

Meanwhile, in the upstairs bedroom, Bubbles was getting ready for what she had planned. While setting things up, she thought back once again to the memory of her and Professor about a month ago; she was still surprised it had taken her so long to think of it...

* * *

_**FLASHBACK**_

_Professor Utonium was eating a sandwich at the table kitchen, taking a lunch break from his lab work. Blossom was at the library researching some curious little tidbit she had come across; Buttercup was at _

_the park presumably playing sports with Mitch and their group of friends. Bubbles, however, was in there kitchen with him, though the Professor hadn't noticed her yet._

_She walked up behind him with a lot on her mind, and then took a seat at the table, finally catching his attention._

_"Bubbles!" he smiled. "I'm just taking a lunch break from my work...would you like me to fix you a sandwich?"_

_Bubbles smiled back. "No thanks, Professor. I'm not really that hungry"_

_"Are you sure?" Bubbles nodded. "All right," the Professor replied. Then, noticing that she seemed to want to talk to him about something, he asked, "What's on your mind, bunny?" using the pet name he mostly used only when they were speaking in private._

_Bubbles sighed. "Well...I was just worried about Blossom and Buttercup." The Professor nodded. He seemed to be breaking up more and more fights between the two lately._

_"You mean worried about how they seem to be constantly arguing lately?"_

_Bubbles nodded. "I'm just worried that they'll do something drastic and never speak to each other again. And I'm worried because..."she looked down at her hands, "…well, I don't know what I can do. I want to talk to them and help them make up, but I don't know how, or even what I'd say." She looked back up at the Professor with hopeful eyes. "Do you have any ideas on what I could do, Professor?"_

_The Professor rubbed his chin. Bubbles had said she didn't know how to go about talking to them...and yet, he figured there might be no other person to help quell the fighting than she. It would probably be up to Bubbles to show them what they were doing to each other; she just needed to know where to start. Professor looked at her._

_"Hmmm...actually sweetie, I think deep down you already have the skill to help your sisters out. You just have figure out how to go about getting them to listen. Perhaps you can start by figuring out just why they seem to argue so much, and then practice a bit of Psychology on them."_

_"Psychology?" Bubbles inquired. "That's like counseling and therapy and stuff, right?"_

_"That's right, but there's a bit more to it than that," answered Professor. "Not only is it helping people to open up about their problems, but it's also about figuring out why their problems exist in the first place; what factors in their lives influence the choices they make, how the people close to them act, how they express emotions, etc. All you have to do is get them to open up to you, and you can probably find the root of the problem."_

_Bubbles thought about it. Get her sisters to open up and find the root of the problem? That seemed like a course of action she might be able to undertake. She already began wondering how she might get Buttercup to open up; she always liked to keep her problems to herself. Still, Bubbles had something to go on now, and she could build from there. She looked up at the professor again._

_"Psychology…get them to open up…find the root of the problem. That sounds like a great idea! I can already think of questions to ask. But..." Then she looked at him with inquiring eyes. "Professor? Do you think I can actually do this? I mean, get my sisters to start being nice to each other again?"_

_With a smile and without hesitation, the Professor answered "Bubbles, I could think of no better person for the job."_

_Bubbles beamed at him and gave him a great hug. "Thanks, Professor!"_

_Professor hugged her back. "You're welcome, bunny. Are you sure you don't want me to make you something for lunch?"_

_Bubbles let go of the Professor and flew towards the door. "No, I'm fine, thanks...I've got some things to think about!" And with that, she raced upstairs._

_**END FLASHBACK**_

* * *

Bubbles hoped she was ready to do this...but there was no time for doubt, as there was soon a knock upon the door.

"Bubbles? It's Blossom...can I come in?"

"Yeah, come in."

The door opened, and though slightly put-off by the fact that only Blossom was standing behind it, she couldn't help but be amused at watching her red-haired sister's jaw drop open….

* * *

_  
That's it for the first chapter! Let me know what you think about it, eh? Thanks for reading!_


	2. Step 2: Blossom's Session

_Wow! I can't even believe I decided to continue this! Well...if there's anyone who even remembers this story, for you, here's Chapter 2!_

* * *

"Bubbles, what in the world!?..." exclaimed Blossom upon entering the bedroom. Bubbles chuckled to herself.

The furniture in the bedroom had been rearranged. The bed, instead of being in the middle of the room against the wall, was now in a corner off to one side. In its place were two beanbags (one green and one pink), along with a small chair that had been moved from in front of the girls' vanity. There was a lamp on a stand next to this chair, its shade helping to spread the light over the new arrangement at a comfortable level.

The real shock to Blossom, however, came once she caught a glance of Bubbles herself. She had changed from her usual sky blue skirt; she now donned an oversized, faded robin's-egg blue sweater with a thick, dark blue horizontal stripe running across it. Her legs were covered by a pair of black slacks, which reached down to her usual Mary Jane's. Across her eyes (held up by who-knows-what) were a pair of reading glasses, an accessory that usually served to remedy Bubbles's still slightly imperfect eyesight, but in this case was used to really sell the look she was apparently going for. In her hands were a legal pad and a black pen; on her face was an amused smile.

"Hello, Blossom! If you could have a seat on one of the beanbags, I will be with you shortly," Bubbles said in her most professional manner to her still gaping sister.

Blossom shook her head and regained her senses. She didn't quite know what to expect when her sister had asked (nee, ordered) her to meet her upstairs, but it certainly wasn't anything this elaborate. However, after taking the scene in again, she began to get an idea on what was about to happen. It looked like a semi-typical therapy session, with beanbags taking the place of "The Couch." Bubbles had presumably dressed the part of a therapist (as best she could) to complete the illusion...or perhaps she did it in the hope that her sisters would take her a bit more seriously.

Whatever the reason, it seemed to have the desired effect. Blossom headed over to the prepared area without further inquiry, and sat herself (predictably) upon the pink beanbag. She struggled to find a comfortable position while Bubbles took a seat upon the chair, jotting down notes in her legal pad. The two sat wordlessly, the light from the lamp next to the blond-haired girl helping to set a comfortable atmosphere, and the only sounds in the room coming from the pen on the paper...until finally, Bubbles spoke.

"Okay...Welcome, Blossom, I'm glad you could make it! My name is Bubbles, and...ahh...I'll be your therapist today...I mean, for this session!" Bubbles spoke as though she was trying to remember lines for a play. She cleared her throat, then continued on.

"Um...before we start, why don't you tell me a little about yourself?" Blossom rolled her eyes impatiently.

"I'm your sister, Bubbles," she stated, exasperated, "you already know practically everything about me. Let's just skip to the part where you ask me what's wrong."

Bubbles huffed. "Fine, fine...but just so you know, I'm breaking port-er-call...pro-ter-call...pro-toh-call?...protocol! I'm breaking protocol by not letting you introduce yourself. That's not a good thing!" she stated matter-of-factly while wagging her finger. "But I guess I have to get you talking, so we can skip all of that this time.

"Now," Bubbles began, adjusting her glasses for effect, "do you know why we're here?"

"Because you told me to come up here?" Blossom retorted sarcastically.

Bubbles huffed again. "No! Well...yes, but do you know why I wanted you to come up here?"

"Because Buttercup and I were fighting?"

"Yes...but it goes deeper than that. You guys have always had your...disagreements...but lately, they've become much more than simple sibling arguments. I've noticed they've been getting...oh, what's the word?...umm..._progressively_ more intense lately, to the point where you guys do more damage to each other than you would to a villain destroying Townsville! Therefore, I think we need to find the root of the problem before you guys kill each other." ('...or before I do it myself for ruining my pictures,' she added in her head).

Blossom thought long about this latest statement. She hadn't noticed in the least up to now, but her fights with Buttercup did seem to result in a lot more bruises and painful mornings than usual. Had her relationship with her green-clad sister deteriorated that much without her noticing? Were her and Buttercup truly on the cusp of delivering a blow that would shatter their relationship (and thus the Powerpuff Girls altogether) for good? What would Buttercup think of this? Would she even care? And what effect had this had on Bubbles? Surely enough that she felt she had to intervene in a drastic way such as this, but how deep did her feelings really go? And the Professor...was she causing undue strain on him, too? Was the entire family suffering because of Buttercup and herself? Was the entire city suffering?

These were all questions lingering in her head after Bubbles's proclamation of purpose, but she wasn't the ones asking the questions in this session.

"So...to start, I thought I'd ask a few questions," Bubbles exclaimed to Blossom, getting more comfortable in the role of psychologist with every passing moment. She had written on her legal pad a list of questions she thought she could have her two sisters answer alternatively, but had quickly modified them slightly upon finding out that only one sister had shown up at the door. "Feel free to answer any of them, but you don't have to. But it'd really help if you did, because then...umm...well, because then I won't have to ask as many questions later.

"First, how often do you wake up in a good mood?"

Blossom looked strangely at Bubbles for a second, not seeing the relevance of the question, but answered anyways. "Well...I'm not sure, really. Fairly often, I guess. Though I don't see the point in the question."

"Just a general personality thing," Bubbles replied while jotting down notes in the legal pad. "Anyways, next question: would you say that you're generally happy with your life?"

"Generally? Of course! I'm a crime fighting super-heroine who gets to save an entire city on a daily basis. I'm looked up to by a lot of people, and I can be a beacon of hope and help set a postive example for all. I also have a loving father and two wonderful..." Blossom's tone turned darker. "...well, one wonderful sister, and a brute of a sister whose only purpose in life is to constantly-" Bubbles cut her off.

"Hey! Save it for later," she spoke sternly, "we'll get there soon enough. Now...what's your favorite color?"

"Oh, well it's...wait, how's that going to help me?" Blossom inquired impatiently.

"I thought it'd be nice to know!" Bubbles replied with a smile, and though Blossom sighed, a reluctant grin briefly graced her features as well.

"Okay," Bubbles continued, adjusting her glasses yet again, "What sort of qualities do you like in people?"

"Hmmm...well, I value honesty and a caring attitude in people, like the Professor or Ms. Keane. And then there are hard-working people like Ms Bellum and all the police officers and firefighters. And people who really try to make the world a little better for everyone...like you!" Blossom gave a big smile to her sister.

"Thanks, hee hee!" Bubbles smiled back, but noted in the back of her mind that someone seemed to be left off of that list. She figured that person might have a larger role in Blossom's answers to the next question. "What about qualities you dislike in people?"

Blossom wasted no time in confirming Bubbles's suspicions. "For starters, I hate it when people don't think things through. And I can't stand when people take on that 'attack first, ask questions later' mentality...it just seems brutish, and really hardly makes you any better than the people you're attacking! I also dislike it when people have the power but not the responsibility to use it right. Oh, and don't get me started on--" Again, Bubbles tried to cut her off.

"Bl...Bloss...Blossom!" Her sister stopped, startled. "Ahh...I think I've got enough." And she had; her page was almost full of notes.

"But I've got more...."

"That's okay. I don't want to be here for hours. Besides...now we have to get away from what you think of others, and I have to ask you how you think other people see you. So...how do you think other people see you?"

Blossom took a moment to think about this question before speaking. "How others see me? Well...it depends on who the 'other people' are. If you're talking about the citizens of Townsville, then as I said before, I'm probably looked up to and admired as a heroine, and seen as a positive role model. If it's Ms. Bellum or Ms. Keane, I'm probably a good student or model citizen, always trying my hardest to be the best I can be, even if I sometimes make mistakes. Criminals see me as the bane of their existence! The Professor probably sees me as a daughter with perfect behavior, and one whom he can count on to keep things running smoothly when he's not around. If you're talking about yourself...well...I'd hope you see me as a great leader, and someone who you can talk to about anything. As for Buttercup, she probably sees me as--"

"WAIT!" Bubbles exclaimed, cutting Blossom off for the third time. Blossom was taken aback.

"What?"

"You gotta wait until I ask you that question!"

Blossom gave a very annoyed sigh. "Fine, go ahead!"

Bubbles smiled, and adjusted her reading glasses once again. "Right...now we're going to get into the meat of the session. How do you think Buttercup herself sees you?"

Blossom rolled her eyes and continued her previous statement. "Well...as I was about to say, Buttercup probably sees me as a bossy, fussy and strict...ruler, or...tyrant, or something ridiculous like that. She thinks I'm a goody two-shoes who always plays by the rules and does the right thing."

"And are you?"

Blossom was caught off guard. "...excuse me?"

"Are you a bossy, fussy, goody two-shoes who always does things by the book?" Bubbles repeated. "Or...I mean, do you think you are any of those things?"

"Well...no, I'm not...I mean, maybe a little...I guess I can be a bit bossy at times, but someone has to get things in order! And of course I play by the rules, I'm a crime fighter! How would it look if I didn't? It'd look like I was unfit to lead this group, that's how! So yeah, maybe I am some of those things, but only out of necessity. Because someone has to be!" Blossom finished heatedly, her arms crossed and her face sporting a slight scowl. Bubbles hurriedly scribbled more notes on the legal pad.

"Okay." she began as she finished writing. The way she said it, as though she were about to get to some weighty matter, caused Blossom to sit up straighter in the beanbag and pay closer attention.

"Tell me, Blossom: what do you think of Buttercup? Personality, values, choices, both good qualities and bad, as general or as pacific as you'd like to get (but also as brief as possible, please!), tell me what you think of Buttercup."

And there it was. This was the money question. The question that Blossom had waited for, the one that would allow her to finally vent all of her feelings towards her brash sister.

"Honestly? I think she's a loud, obnoxious, quick-tempered little girl who doesn't appreciate anything I do, or why I do them. She only ever thinks about herself, and how she can help herself out, and what's best for her, instead of thinking of what's best for our group, or what's best for Townsville. I really think that, out of all of us, she'd probably be the most likely to turn to the dark side, or to at least give up hero work. I really wish I could show her a thing or two about herself, but she'd never listen to me, anyways. She thinks she's perfect just the way she is, and someone really needs to tell her that she's not!"

Blossom said that as though she had been wanting to say it for a good long time. Bubbles tried her best not to look or sound surprised; after all, she had very well invited Blossom to say these rather horrible things about their sister. She instead tried a different method.

"So...what about the positives? Can you tell me anything positive about Buttercup?"

"NO!"

"Blossom..."

"AURGH...fine. I'll try." Blossom thought about it for a second. "She's rather good at getting into trouble," she said with a snicker. Bubbles wasn't amused.

"Blossom, please try and be serious! Can't you think of any good qualities Buttercup has?"

"Well...I guess she's good on her toes. And...I guess...she's pretty feisty, if you want to call that a positive. And...."

As Blossom went going on, Bubbles continued to write notes on her notepad. She ran out of room on the first page, and as she flipped to the second page, something came falling out of the pad. Blossom took notice.

"Hey, what's that?" All she saw was a large, red streak before Bubbles snatched it back and stood up. "Nothing, nothing," she said hastily. "Just some trash; I'll go toss it..." She headed for the door to the hallway to toss the piece of paper out. To her astonishment, however, when she opened it, she found that Buttercup was leaning against the wall, apparently waiting for whatever was going on inside to be done. The two sisters looked at each other.

"Is it my turn yet?" Buttercup inquired.

"Ummm..." was Bubbles' reply. She couldn't say much else, however, because Blossom was suddenly over her shoulder.

"How long have you been there!? Were you eavesdropping? How much did you hear!?" She cried loud. Buttercup drew a scowl.

"I didn't hear nothing. I was just standing here, Miss 21 Questions!"

"Hey, don't call me that!"

"I'll call you whatever I want!"

"No you won't!"

"Yes, I will!"

"GIRLS!"

Bubbles interrupted the argument with a loud screech that shut her sisters up a bit. She took a deep breath, then turned to Blossom.

"I think that'll be enough for now. Thank you, Blossom!" She turned to Buttercup. "Buttercup, you can come in now."

Blossom huffed; Buttercup blew a raspberry; Bubbles sighed. It was going to be a looooong night....

* * *

_Well, that was it! Probably wasn't worth the wait (not after almost a year-and-a-half), but at least it's out here! Let me know what you think! See you guys in 2011 for Chapter 3!_ :-P


End file.
